Skip to content

Roark Live Bench · Suite v1.3 · Sweep of 30 October 2026

Voice AI models, ranked on live phone calls.

Every speech-to-text, language model and text-to-speech model, run in every combination on the same real call to the same agent. A model is ranked on every stack it runs in; the stacks are the evidence.

662 stacks published14,070 scored callsPublished at 20 scored calls

Our picks

Roark scoreTask completionMedian responseCost per minute

The read

  • 430 of 642 cascades complete the task in at least 90% of calls, and the top 10 sit within 1 point of each other. What separates the top stacks is speed and cost.
  • Median response time runs from 2.0 s to 6.2 s on the same agent and the same caller, a spread of 4.2 s that comes entirely from the models behind it.
  • No stack wins everything. The fastest, Speechmatics Linden-1 (own VAD) + Anthropic Claude Haiku 4.5 + ElevenLabs Turbo v2.5 at 2.0 s, ranks 559 of 642 on task completion; the most complete is Speechmatics Linden-1 (own VAD) + OpenAI GPT-6.1 Sol + OpenAI TTS-1 HD at 99%.
  • The language model matters most: swapping it moves task completion by 7 points, against 3 for the speech engine and 2 for the transcriber.
  • The fastest speech-to-speech model answers 0.1 s sooner than the fastest cascade, and its completion rate sits 12 points below the best cascade.

Cascade vs Speech-to-Speech

The first choice to make. A cascade chains three models: one transcribes, one decides what to say, one speaks. A speech-to-speech model does all three at once. Both run the same agent on the same calls here.

  • Cascades lead on task completion, tool use, time to first word, barge-in handling and cost per task; speech-to-speech leads on response time. Neither wins outright, so the right choice depends on what your calls need.
  • Speech-to-speech costs 1.6 times as much per completed task: $0.24 for speech-to-speech against $0.15 for cascades.
  • The biggest difference is response time: 3.8 s for cascades against 2.1 s for speech-to-speech.
CascadeSpeech-to-speech
Task completionTool useTime to first wordResponse timeBarge-in handlingCost per task255075100
MeasureCascadeSpeech-to-speech
Task completion
94% (leads)85%
Tool use
78% (leads)78%
Time to first word
0.8 s (leads)1.1 s
Response time
3.8 s2.1 s (leads)
Barge-in handling
100% (leads)96%
Cost per task
$0.15 (leads)$0.24

The three strongest of each, averaged. Cascades: AssemblyAI Universal-3.6 Pro + OpenAI GPT-6.1 Sol + Rime Coda; Speechmatics Linden-1 (own VAD) + OpenAI GPT-4.1 + Rime Coda; AssemblyAI Universal-3.6 Pro + Google Gemini 3.8 Flash + Rime Coda. Speech-to-speech: grok-voice-think-fast-2.0; gpt-live-1 (backend gpt-6-luna); grok-voice-3.0. Each measure is scored 0 to 100 on its own scale, further out is better; the table gives the same figures in their own units.

Which to use

  • Choose speech-to-speech when the pause matters more than the outcome: short transactional calls, callers who interrupt, queues where every half second costs you callers. Expect to pay more, and choose the model carefully (grok-voice-3.0 leads here).
  • Choose a cascade when the call has to complete, when cost matters, or when you need to see which stage to fix. It is 12 points ahead on task completion here.
  • Costs are what each stack’s providers charged for these calls, at the rates in effect when they ran. Telephony and hosting are not included.

Speech-to-Text

The transcriber turns the caller's speech into text. It decides what the agent thinks it heard, and nothing after it can start until it finishes.

  • AssemblyAI Universal-3.6 Pro, AssemblyAI Universal-3.5 Pro, Deepgram Nova-3 and Speechmatics Enhanced (realtime) are level: none leads by more than the margin of error. Of them, AssemblyAI Universal-3.6 Pro costs least, at $0.030 a call. Avoid Speechmatics Linden-1 (own VAD): last on semantic word error rate (2.2%).
  • Speechmatics Linden-1 (own VAD) delivers its transcript in 0.49 s, OpenAI Whisper-1 in 1.93 s: 1.44 s added to every turn of the call.
  • AssemblyAI Universal-3.6 Pro is the most accurate: it changes the meaning of 0.9% of the caller's words, against 2.2% for Speechmatics Linden-1 (own VAD).
  • In 341 of 648 cascades the transcriber is the slowest step of the turn, whichever model runs it.

Roark score, best first

90Universal-3.6 Pro84Universal-3.5 Pro82Nova-382Enhanced (realtime)79Linden-171Nova-266Standard (realtime)56Whisper-152Linden-1 (own VAD)
Every transcriber on every figure, sorted by roark score. Column headers sort the table.
#
1Universal-3.6 ProAssemblyAI90 / 100. Semantic word error rate 0.9%, 61.2 of 71 points; Time to final transcript 0.89 s, 28.6 of 29 points(among the best)0.9%(among the best)0.89 s(among the best)$0.030
2Universal-3.5 ProAssemblyAI84 / 100. Semantic word error rate 1.1%, 55.7 of 71 points; Time to final transcript 0.90 s, 28.6 of 29 points(among the best)1.1%(among the best)0.90 s$0.030
3Nova-3Deepgram82 / 100. Semantic word error rate 1.1%, 53.5 of 71 points; Time to final transcript 0.89 s, 28.6 of 29 points(among the best)1.1%(among the best)0.89 s(among the best)$0.031
4Enhanced (realtime)Speechmatics82 / 100. Semantic word error rate 1.1%, 53.3 of 71 points; Time to final transcript 0.98 s, 28.6 of 29 points(among the best)1.1%(among the best)0.98 s$0.054
5Linden-1Speechmatics79 / 100. Semantic word error rate 1.3%, 50.0 of 71 points; Time to final transcript 0.99 s, 28.6 of 29 points1.3%0.99 s$0.020(among the best)
6Nova-2Deepgram71 / 100. Semantic word error rate 1.5%, 42.2 of 71 points; Time to final transcript 0.89 s, 28.6 of 29 points1.5%0.89 s(among the best)$0.023(among the best)
7Standard (realtime)Speechmatics66 / 100. Semantic word error rate 1.7%, 37.5 of 71 points; Time to final transcript 0.96 s, 28.6 of 29 points1.7%0.96 s$0.031
8Whisper-1OpenAI56 / 100. Semantic word error rate 1.4%, 45.5 of 71 points; Time to final transcript 1.93 s, 10.9 of 29 points1.4%1.93 s$0.025
9Linden-1 (own VAD)Speechmatics52 / 100. Semantic word error rate 2.2%, 23.1 of 71 points; Time to final transcript 0.49 s, 28.6 of 29 points2.2%0.49 s(among the best)$0.020(among the best)

Open a model to see where it ranks and the stacks it works best in.

Cost against qualitySemantic word error rate · Cost per call
$0$0.02$0.04$0.06$0.080.5%1%1.5%2%2.5%Cheap and accurateAccurate, pricierCheap, less accuratePricier and less accurateLinden-1 (own VAD)Linden-1Nova-2Whisper-1Universal-3.6 ProUniversal-3.5 ProStandard (realtime)Nova-3Enhanced (realtime)Cost per call · ← betterSemantic word error rate · better →
Speed against qualitySemantic word error rate · Time to final transcript
0 s1 s2 s3 s0.5%1%1.5%2%2.5%Fast and accurateAccurate, slowerFast, less accurateSlower and less accurateLinden-1 (own VAD)Nova-3Nova-2Universal-3.6 ProUniversal-3.5 ProStandard (realtime)Enhanced (realtime)Linden-1Whisper-1Time to final transcript · ← betterSemantic word error rate · better →

Language model

The language model decides what the agent says and does. It has the most influence on whether the task gets done, and usually takes the largest share of each turn.

  • Pick OpenAI GPT-6.1 Sol: it leads on task completion (95%), tool use (77%) and instruction following (4.2 / 5). If speed matters more, Anthropic Claude Haiku 4.5 is the quickest, at 0.36 s, and completes 91%. Avoid OpenAI GPT-4o: last on task completion (88%).
  • Anthropic Claude Haiku 4.5 starts answering in 0.36 s, Google Gemini 3.8 Flash in 1.47 s: 1.11 s added to every turn of the call.
  • OpenAI GPT-6.1 Sol uses its tools most reliably: it handles its tools without a mistake on 77% of calls, against 38% for OpenAI GPT-5.1.
  • In 161 of 648 cascades the language model is the slowest step of the turn, whichever model runs it.

Roark score, best first

66GPT-6.1 Sol61Claude Sonnet 5.551Gemini 3.8 Flash50GPT-4.149Claude Haiku 4.547GPT-4o mini44GPT-5.144GPT-4o
Every language model on every figure, sorted by roark score. Column headers sort the table.
#
1GPT-6.1 SolOpenAI66 / 100. Task completion 95%, 27.0 of 36 points; Tool use 77%, 15.0 of 27 points; Instruction following 4.2 / 5, 11.3 of 18 points; Time to first token 0.97 s, 12.4 of 18 points(among the best)95%(among the best)4.2 / 5(among the best)77%(among the best)0.97 s73%$0.019(among the best)
2Claude Sonnet 5.5Anthropic61 / 100. Task completion 94%, 25.1 of 36 points; Tool use 72%, 11.8 of 27 points; Instruction following 4.2 / 5, 10.8 of 18 points; Time to first token 0.90 s, 13.3 of 18 points(among the best)94%(among the best)4.2 / 5(among the best)72%(among the best)0.90 s–$0.138
3Gemini 3.8 FlashGoogle51 / 100. Task completion 95%, 26.5 of 36 points; Tool use 62%, 6.7 of 27 points; Instruction following 4.2 / 5, 11.1 of 18 points; Time to first token 1.47 s, 6.4 of 18 points(among the best)95%(among the best)4.2 / 5(among the best)62%(among the best)1.47 s–$0.016(among the best)
4GPT-4.1OpenAI50 / 100. Task completion 92%, 21.2 of 36 points; Tool use 48%, 0.0 of 27 points; Instruction following 4.2 / 5, 10.8 of 18 points; Time to first token 0.52 s, 18.0 of 18 points92%4.2 / 5(among the best)48%0.52 s82%(among the best)$0.022
5Claude Haiku 4.5Anthropic49 / 100. Task completion 91%, 19.4 of 36 points; Tool use 47%, 0.0 of 27 points; Instruction following 4.2 / 5, 11.0 of 18 points; Time to first token 0.36 s, 18.2 of 18 points91%4.2 / 5(among the best)47%0.36 s(among the best)–$0.062
6GPT-4o miniOpenAI47 / 100. Task completion 90%, 17.4 of 36 points; Tool use 51%, 0.7 of 27 points; Instruction following 4.2 / 5, 10.8 of 18 points; Time to first token 0.45 s, 18.2 of 18 points90%4.2 / 5(among the best)51%0.45 s(among the best)81%(among the best)$0.002(among the best)
7GPT-5.1OpenAI44 / 100. Task completion 89%, 17.0 of 36 points; Tool use 38%, 0.0 of 27 points; Instruction following 4.1 / 5, 10.1 of 18 points; Time to first token 0.59 s, 17.1 of 18 points89%4.1 / 538%0.59 s74%(among the best)$0.031
8GPT-4oOpenAI44 / 100. Task completion 88%, 15.0 of 36 points; Tool use 50%, 0.0 of 27 points; Instruction following 4.2 / 5, 10.9 of 18 points; Time to first token 0.45 s, 18.2 of 18 points88%4.2 / 5(among the best)50%0.45 s(among the best)–$0.027

Open a model to see where it ranks and the stacks it works best in.

Cost against qualityTask completion · Cost per call
$0$0.05$0.1$0.15$0.285%90%95%100%Cheap and reliableReliable, pricierCheap, less reliablePricier and less reliableGPT-4o miniGemini 3.8 FlashGPT-6.1 SolGPT-4.1GPT-4oGPT-5.1Claude Haiku 4.5Claude Sonnet 5.5Cost per call · ← betterTask completion · better →
Speed against qualityTask completion · Time to first token
0 s0.5 s1 s1.5 s2 s85%90%95%100%Fast and reliableReliable, slowerFast, less reliableSlower and less reliableClaude Haiku 4.5GPT-4o miniGPT-4oGPT-4.1GPT-5.1Claude Sonnet 5.5GPT-6.1 SolGemini 3.8 FlashTime to first token · ← betterTask completion · better →

Text-to-Speech

The speech engine is the voice the caller hears, and the last step before they hear anything.

  • Cartesia Sonic-3.6, ElevenLabs v4 Turbo and Cartesia Sonic-3.5 are level: none leads by more than the margin of error. Of them, Cartesia Sonic-3.5 costs least, at $0.165 a call. Avoid OpenAI TTS-1 HD: last on readback accuracy (80%), word error rate (8.7%) and time to first audio byte (2.09 s).
  • ElevenLabs v4 Turbo starts speaking in 0.11 s, OpenAI TTS-1 HD in 2.09 s: 1.97 s added to every turn of the call.
  • Cartesia Sonic-3.6 is the most accurate: it reads codes, amounts and dates back correctly 87% of the time, against 80% for OpenAI TTS-1 HD.
  • Cartesia Sonic-3.6 sounds the most human: 3.8 / 5, against 3.4 / 5 for ElevenLabs Flash v2.5.
  • In 99 of 648 cascades the speech engine is the slowest step of the turn, most often with OpenAI TTS-1 HD (54 of them).

Roark score, best first

77Sonic-3.677v4 Turbo77Sonic-3.573Sonic-371Turbo v2.570Flash v2.568Coda55TTS-139TTS-1 HD
Every speech engine on every figure, sorted by roark score. Column headers sort the table.
#
1Sonic-3.6Cartesia77 / 100. Readback accuracy 87%, 25.6 of 38 points; Word error rate 6.2%, 14.5 of 25 points; Time to first audio byte 0.12 s, 25.0 of 25 points; Voice consistency 99%, 12.1 of 13 points(among the best)6.2%87%(among the best)3.8 / 5(among the best)99%0.12 s(among the best)$0.168
2v4 TurboElevenLabs77 / 100. Readback accuracy 87%, 25.1 of 38 points; Word error rate 5.7%, 15.8 of 25 points; Time to first audio byte 0.11 s, 25.0 of 25 points; Voice consistency 98%, 11.2 of 13 points(among the best)5.7%(among the best)87%(among the best)3.6 / 598%0.11 s(among the best)$0.470
3Sonic-3.5Cartesia77 / 100. Readback accuracy 86%, 24.6 of 38 points; Word error rate 6.2%, 14.6 of 25 points; Time to first audio byte 0.13 s, 25.0 of 25 points; Voice consistency 100%, 12.4 of 13 points(among the best)6.2%86%(among the best)3.8 / 5(among the best)100%(among the best)0.13 s$0.165
4Sonic-3Cartesia73 / 100. Readback accuracy 85%, 23.3 of 38 points; Word error rate 6.9%, 12.8 of 25 points; Time to first audio byte 0.17 s, 25.0 of 25 points; Voice consistency 99%, 12.1 of 13 points6.9%85%3.4 / 599%0.17 s$0.165
5Turbo v2.5ElevenLabs71 / 100. Readback accuracy 80%, 19.0 of 38 points; Word error rate 5.7%, 15.6 of 25 points; Time to first audio byte 0.15 s, 25.0 of 25 points; Voice consistency 98%, 11.5 of 13 points5.7%(among the best)80%3.4 / 598%0.15 s$0.451
6Flash v2.5ElevenLabs70 / 100. Readback accuracy 80%, 18.5 of 38 points; Word error rate 6%, 14.9 of 25 points; Time to first audio byte 0.12 s, 25.0 of 25 points; Voice consistency 98%, 11.5 of 13 points6%(among the best)80%3.4 / 598%0.12 s(among the best)$0.437
7CodaRime68 / 100. Readback accuracy 83%, 21.7 of 38 points; Word error rate 8.1%, 9.8 of 25 points; Time to first audio byte 0.18 s, 25.0 of 25 points; Voice consistency 99%, 11.8 of 13 points8.1%83%3.7 / 5(among the best)99%0.18 s$0.116(among the best)
8TTS-1OpenAI55 / 100. Readback accuracy 82%, 21.0 of 38 points; Word error rate 6.1%, 14.8 of 25 points; Time to first audio byte 1.13 s, 7.1 of 25 points; Voice consistency 100%, 12.5 of 13 points6.1%82%3.6 / 5100%(among the best)1.13 s$0.036(among the best)
9TTS-1 HDOpenAI39 / 100. Readback accuracy 80%, 18.3 of 38 points; Word error rate 8.7%, 8.4 of 25 points; Time to first audio byte 2.09 s, 0.0 of 25 points; Voice consistency 100%, 12.4 of 13 points8.7%80%3.6 / 5100%(among the best)2.09 s$0.065(among the best)

Open a model to see where it ranks and the stacks it works best in.

Cost against qualityReadback accuracy · Cost per call
$0$0.2$0.4$0.675%80%85%90%Cheap and accurateAccurate, pricierCheap, less accuratePricier and less accurateTTS-1TTS-1 HDCodaSonic-3Sonic-3.5Sonic-3.6Flash v2.5Turbo v2.5v4 TurboCost per call · ← betterReadback accuracy · better →
Speed against qualityReadback accuracy · Time to first audio byte
0 s1 s2 s3 s75%80%85%90%Fast and accurateAccurate, slowerFast, less accurateSlower and less accuratev4 TurboSonic-3.6Flash v2.5Sonic-3.5Turbo v2.5Sonic-3CodaTTS-1TTS-1 HDTime to first audio byte · ← betterReadback accuracy · better →

Speech-to-Speech models

One model listens, reasons and speaks, so there is nothing to swap and no stages to split. Each is judged on the whole call, with the same calls and the same scoring as every cascade.

  • The model matters as much as the architecture: xAI Grok Voice 3.0 completes 87% of tasks, ElevenLabs Realtime v1 Mini 42%.
  • xAI Grok Voice 3.0 answers in 1.9 s against 4.2 s for Google Gemini 2.5 Flash native audio.
  • Price varies as much as quality: $0.06 per completed task for Amazon Nova 2 Sonic, $0.69 for OpenAI GPT Realtime 2.

Roark score, best first

65GPT Live 1 (Sol)66Grok Voice 3.065GPT Live 1 (Luna)65Grok Voice Think Fast 2.053Gemini 3.8 Live53GPT Realtime 2.148Ultravox v0.748Gemini 3.1 Flash Live (preview)48GPT Realtime 246Nova 2 Sonic47Realtime v1 Max45Realtime v1 Mini44GPT Realtime 2.1 mini36Gemini 2.5 Flash native audio

Whiskers show the 95% interval. The shaded models tie for first: these calls cannot separate them.

Every speech-to-speech model on every figure, sorted by roark score. Column headers sort the table.
#
1= (tied)GPT Live 1 (Sol)OpenAI65 / 100±3.8. Task completion 85%, 6.0 of 23 points; Response time 2.3 s, 16.6 of 18 points; Instruction following 4.2 / 5, 8.2 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 87%, 10.2 of 14 points; Time to first word 1.4 s, 3.9 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points(among the best)85%(among the best)4.2 / 587%(among the best)2.3 s(among the best)1.4 s77%3.1 / 5100%(among the best)$0.24
2= (tied)Grok Voice 3.0xAI66 / 100±4.7. Task completion 87%, 8.0 of 23 points; Response time 1.9 s, 18.2 of 18 points; Instruction following 4.5 / 5, 10.5 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 66%, 4.4 of 14 points; Time to first word 0.9 s, 4.5 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points(among the best)87%(among the best)4.5 / 5(among the best)66%1.9 s(among the best)0.9 s94%3.0 / 5100%(among the best)$0.26
3= (tied)GPT Live 1 (Luna)OpenAI65 / 100±3.5. Task completion 85%, 5.7 of 23 points; Response time 2.3 s, 16.6 of 18 points; Instruction following 4.2 / 5, 8.4 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 86%, 9.9 of 14 points; Time to first word 1.5 s, 3.8 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points(among the best)85%(among the best)4.2 / 586%(among the best)2.3 s(among the best)1.5 s93%3.1 / 5100%(among the best)$0.21
4= (tied)Grok Voice Think Fast 2.0xAI65 / 100±3.7. Task completion 82%, 2.8 of 23 points; Response time 2.2 s, 17.4 of 18 points; Instruction following 4.6 / 5, 10.7 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 82%, 8.6 of 14 points; Time to first word 0.9 s, 4.5 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points(among the best)82%4.6 / 5(among the best)82%(among the best)2.2 s(among the best)0.9 s100%(among the best)3.6 / 5100%(among the best)$0.26
5= (tied)Gemini 3.8 LiveGoogle53 / 100±4.8. Task completion 78%, 0.0 of 23 points; Response time 2.8 s, 14.6 of 18 points; Instruction following 4.3 / 5, 8.7 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 69%, 5.2 of 14 points; Time to first word 1.6 s, 3.6 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points78%4.3 / 5(among the best)69%2.8 s1.6 s100%(among the best)4.1 / 5(among the best)100%(among the best)$0.14(among the best)
6= (tied)GPT Realtime 2.1OpenAI53 / 100±5.7. Task completion 78%, 0.0 of 23 points; Response time 2.6 s, 15.6 of 18 points; Instruction following 3.8 / 5, 5.6 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 75%, 6.8 of 14 points; Time to first word 0.8 s, 4.5 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 99%, 4.3 of 5 points78%3.8 / 575%2.6 s0.8 s(among the best)83%3.9 / 5(among the best)99%$0.43
7= (tied)Ultravox v0.7Ultravox48 / 100±5.0. Task completion 79%, 0.0 of 23 points; Response time 2.4 s, 16.2 of 18 points; Instruction following 3.7 / 5, 4.9 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 61%, 3.0 of 14 points; Time to first word 1.6 s, 3.6 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points79%3.7 / 561%2.4 s1.6 s94%3.6 / 5100%(among the best)$0.22
8= (tied)Gemini 3.1 Flash Live (preview)Google48 / 100±5.1. Task completion 80%, 0.0 of 23 points; Response time 2.7 s, 15.1 of 18 points; Instruction following 4.2 / 5, 8.0 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 38%, 0.0 of 14 points; Time to first word 1.5 s, 3.8 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points80%4.2 / 538%2.7 s1.5 s100%(among the best)4.0 / 5(among the best)100%(among the best)$0.15
9= (tied)GPT Realtime 2OpenAI48 / 100±6.7. Task completion 76%, 0.0 of 23 points; Response time 2.9 s, 14.0 of 18 points; Instruction following 3.8 / 5, 5.4 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 64%, 3.7 of 14 points; Time to first word 0.8 s, 4.5 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points76%3.8 / 564%2.9 s0.8 s(among the best)91%3.7 / 5100%(among the best)$0.69
10= (tied)Nova 2 SonicAmazon46 / 100±5.1. Task completion 69%, 0.0 of 23 points; Response time 3.0 s, 13.8 of 18 points; Instruction following 4.2 / 5, 7.9 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 48%, 0.0 of 14 points; Time to first word 1.5 s, 3.7 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points69%4.2 / 548%3.0 s1.5 s100%(among the best)3.5 / 5100%(among the best)$0.06(among the best)
11= (tied)Realtime v1 MaxElevenLabs47 / 100±7.5. Task completion 56%, 0.0 of 23 points; Response time 2.6 s, 15.6 of 18 points; Instruction following 4.0 / 5, 6.7 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 40%, 0.0 of 14 points; Time to first word 0.7 s, 4.5 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points56%4.0 / 540%2.6 s0.7 s(among the best)76%3.9 / 5(among the best)100%(among the best)$0.65
12= (tied)Realtime v1 MiniElevenLabs45 / 100±7.1. Task completion 42%, 0.0 of 23 points; Response time 2.7 s, 15.1 of 18 points; Instruction following 3.8 / 5, 5.1 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 34%, 0.0 of 14 points; Time to first word 0.7 s, 4.5 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points42%3.8 / 534%2.7 s0.7 s(among the best)94%3.4 / 5100%(among the best)$0.64
13= (tied)GPT Realtime 2.1 miniOpenAI44 / 100±6.7. Task completion 70%, 0.0 of 23 points; Response time 2.8 s, 14.5 of 18 points; Instruction following 3.6 / 5, 4.4 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 51%, 0.3 of 14 points; Time to first word 1.0 s, 4.5 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points70%3.6 / 551%2.8 s1.0 s84%3.9 / 5(among the best)100%(among the best)$0.14(among the best)
14Gemini 2.5 Flash native audioGoogle36 / 100±5.4. Task completion 77%, 0.0 of 23 points; Response time 4.2 s, 8.2 of 18 points; Instruction following 3.9 / 5, 6.2 of 14 points; Semantic word error rate 1.1% (field median, not measured), 10.6 of 14 points; Tool use 40%, 0.0 of 14 points; Time to first word 3.4 s, 0.9 of 5 points; Readback accuracy 84% (field median, not measured), 2.7 of 5 points; Word error rate 5.9% (field median, not measured), 2.8 of 5 points; Voice consistency 100%, 4.5 of 5 points77%3.9 / 540%4.2 s3.4 s100%(among the best)3.7 / 5100%(among the best)$0.08(among the best)

Open a model for its full report, every figure it was scored on and the calls behind them.

Cost against qualityTask completion · Cost per task
$0$0.5$120%40%60%80%100%Cheap and reliableReliable, pricierCheap, less reliablePricier and less reliableNova 2 SonicGemini 2.5 Flash native audioGPT Realtime 2.1 miniGemini 3.8 LiveGemini 3.1 Flash Live (preview)GPT Live 1 (Luna)Ultravox v0.7GPT Live 1 (Sol)Grok Voice 3.0Grok Voice Think Fast 2.0GPT Realtime 2.1Realtime v1 MiniRealtime v1 MaxGPT Realtime 2Cost per task · ← betterTask completion · better →
Speed against qualityTask completion · Response time
1 s2 s3 s4 s5 s20%40%60%80%100%Fast and reliableReliable, slowerFast, less reliableSlower and less reliableGrok Voice 3.0Grok Voice Think Fast 2.0GPT Live 1 (Luna)GPT Live 1 (Sol)Ultravox v0.7Realtime v1 MaxGPT Realtime 2.1Gemini 3.1 Flash Live (preview)Realtime v1 MiniGemini 3.8 LiveGPT Realtime 2.1 miniGPT Realtime 2Nova 2 SonicGemini 2.5 Flash native audioResponse time · ← betterTask completion · better →

Every stack

The evidence behind the model boards: each combination on its own calls, scored on the same recipe. Open a stack for its full report, every figure it was scored on and the calls behind them.

Roark score, top 15

Whiskers show the 95% interval. The shaded stacks tie for first: these calls cannot separate them.

Each score carries its 95% margin of error. A rank is the best place a stack could hold once every margin is allowed for, so stacks the calls cannot tell apart share one and are listed by the low end of their margin; hover a rank for the worst place it could hold. 85 stacks are level with the leader: their calls cannot tell them apart. Among them, 36 OpenAI GPT-6.1 Sol, 22 Anthropic Claude Sonnet 5.5, 19 Google Gemini 3.8 Flash, 4 speech-to-speech, 3 Anthropic Claude Haiku 4.5 and 1 OpenAI GPT-4o mini; 42 AssemblyAI, 20 Deepgram and 19 Speechmatics; 37 Cartesia, 36 ElevenLabs, 7 Rime and 1 OpenAI. A cascade's figures are 25% its own calls and 75% what every other stack shows about its transcriber, language model and voice. Not ranked here for missing data: Speechmatics Linden-1 + OpenAI GPT-6.1 Sol + OpenAI TTS-1 HD (no response time or tool use or readback accuracy or voice consistency).

Loading every stack

By industry

Each industry ranked on its own calls: the same five callers, its own tasks and tools. A stack has a handful of calls in each, so a cascade is ranked on what its transcriber, language model and voice show across every stack in that industry, and a speech-to-speech model on its own calls there. Pairings show on the main board. Each row reads across: the main board's figure first, then every industry's on the same figure.

No stack matches these filters.

No stack matches

Each industry column is that industry's own board, every row it ranks. A dash is a row the industry does not rank on this figure; the arrow beside an industry opens its full board.

How it works

Every number on this page comes from real phone calls, placed and scored the same way for every stack.

01

Real calls, four industries, five callers

Roark places real phone calls over the public phone network to a reference agent for each of four industries: rescheduling a clinic appointment, booking an urgent home repair, opening an auto insurance claim and fixing an internet outage. Each agent has its own prompt and tools, identical for every stack. The tasks carry the details real calls trip on: a corrected date of birth, a policy number spelled out, a constraint added halfway through.

Every industry is called by the same five simulated callers: a quiet US English line, a Spanish-accented caller on a city street, an Indian English caller in a busy café, a flustered Southern caller with a baby crying, and a fast caller who interrupts over construction noise. They are equally clear about what they want, so a call fails because of the agent, not the caller. Only the models change, so any difference on the board comes from them.

Each caller rings each industry once for a cascade and four times for a speech-to-speech model. A cascade's figures also draw on its parts, heard in dozens of other stacks; a speech-to-speech model has only its own calls, so it takes more of them.

That makes industries comparable over the same callers, and callers over the same tasks, and the board can be re-ranked by either. One caller within one industry is too few calls to judge, so the board never shows it.

656

stacks

20

calls per stack

13,956

calls scored

02

Every model, in every combination

9 transcribers, 8 language models and 9 voices are run in every combination with each other, beside 14 speech-to-speech models. A model's own figures pool every stack it runs in, adjusted for its partners in each one, so every model is compared as if it ran with the same partners. A transcriber's figure rests on hundreds of calls with every language model and every voice, not on one lucky pairing.

That measures a model where it actually works: inside a running agent, on live phone audio, through interruptions, corrections and real turn-taking. A test that feeds a model clean audio files or one prompt at a time never sees any of that.

03

One score, weighted by what matters on a call

Each section ranks on a Roark score. Every figure scores 0 to 100 between two published points: full marks where doing better makes no difference to the caller, zero where the call breaks down. Each then counts at its weight, and the weights follow one order everywhere: whether the caller got what they rang for, then whether the agent got it right, then speed.

A stack, cascade or speech-to-speech, is scored on the outcome and the reply first, then on what each of its components got right on its own calls: the words its transcriber got wrong in a way that changes the meaning, whether its voice read codes and amounts back right and kept one steady voice, and whether its tools were handled. How human a voice sounds is shown on the boards and not scored. A component that leads its section lifts every stack that carries it, by the same recipe for every stack. A figure a stack cannot carry, such as a semantic word error rate for a speech-to-speech model with no transcript, is credited at the field median, so the stack is neither flattered nor punished for it.

On a full sweep each cascade's figure is 25% what its own calls measured and 75% what every other stack shows about its transcriber, language model and voice, fitted across the whole sweep. The split is the same for every stack, so a lucky run does not lead and a stack's score does not move with how noisy its calls were. In an industry a stack has a handful of calls, so a cascade's figure there is what its transcriber, language model and voice show across every stack in that industry's calls, and a speech-to-speech model's is its own calls there. How a particular pairing beats or misses its parts shows on the main board, where each stack has all of its calls. The best overall, best value and best speech-to-speech picks, and the best stack in each industry, are each the one whose score is highest at the low end of its margin of error, so a few lucky calls cannot carry a stack past one whose score rests on hundreds. Stacks that share a rank are listed by score, so the pick can sit below a higher score it cannot be told from, and its reason says how many stacks are level with it.

That order comes from real-world voice agent calls, where getting the conversation right predicts how a call ends more strongly than speed does. The latency points come from the same calls: replying faster than about 2 seconds made no measurable difference, and calls went measurably worse once the agent took more than about 3 seconds to reply.

Stacks and speech-to-speech

FigureWeightFull marksZero
Task completionscenario_adherence_check23%100%80%
An agent that completes fewer than four calls in five is not fit to deploy. On a full sweep, a cascade's figure is 25% what its own calls (20 or more) measured and 75% what every other stack shows about its transcriber, language model and voice, the same split for every stack, so a lucky run does not lead. Where the sweep is too small for that, and for a speech-to-speech model, the figure is the stack's own. In an industry a stack has a handful of calls, so a cascade's figure there is what its transcriber, language model and voice show across every stack in that industry's calls, and a speech-to-speech model's is its own calls there. How a particular pairing beats or misses its parts shows on the main board, where each stack has all of its calls.
Response timeresponse_time18%2.0 s6.0 s
In real calls, replying faster than 2 s made no measurable difference, and calls went worse past 3 s.
Instruction followinginstruction_follow14%5.0 / 53.0 / 5
Every model scores between 3 and 5 on the judge's 1 to 5 scale, so that is the range.
Semantic word error ratestt_semantic_word_error_rate14%0.5%3%
At 0.5% the best transcribers change the meaning of one word in two hundred on phone audio; at 3% one word in thirty sends the agent the wrong way.
Tool usetool_use14%100%50%
An agent that mishandles its tools on half its calls cannot be trusted with the systems it runs on.
Time to first wordtime_to_first_word5%1.0 s4.0 s
A greeting within 1 s sounds natural; 4 s of silence sounds like a dead line.
Readback accuracytts_entity_readback_accuracy5%100%60%
Reading a code, amount or date wrong breaks the task it was for; the weakest voices get two in five wrong.
Word error ratetts_word_error_rate5%2%12%
At 2% the voice says what it was given; at 12% one word in eight comes out wrong.
Voice consistencyvoice_consistency_check5%100%80%
A voice that changes speaker on one call in five is not one a business can put its name to.

Shown, not scored: Turn budget, Barge-in handlingbarge_in_yield_appropriateness, Human-likenessvoice_human_likeness

Counted only with price factored in: Cost per task

Language model

FigureWeightFull marksZero
Task completionscenario_adherence_check36%100%80%
An agent that completes fewer than four calls in five is not fit to deploy.
Tool usetool_use27%100%50%
An agent that mishandles its tools on half its calls cannot be trusted with the systems it runs on.
Instruction followinginstruction_follow18%5.0 / 53.0 / 5
Every model scores between 3 and 5 on the judge's 1 to 5 scale, so that is the range.
Time to first tokenllm_time_to_first_token18%0.50 s2.00 s
Under 0.5 s is not noticeable; at 2 s the first token alone takes two thirds of the 3 s past which real calls go worse.

Shown, not scored: Prompt cache hitsllm_prompt_cache_hit_rate

Counted only with price factored in: Cost per call

Speech-to-Text

FigureWeightFull marksZero
Semantic word error ratestt_semantic_word_error_rate71%0.5%3%
At 0.5% the best transcribers change the meaning of one word in two hundred on phone audio; at 3% one word in thirty sends the agent the wrong way.
Time to final transcriptstt_time_to_final_transcript29%1.00 s2.50 s
The fastest transcribers finish in about 1 s; past 2.5 s the transcript alone uses most of a natural reply time.

Shown, not scored: Word error ratestt_word_error_rate

Counted only with price factored in: Cost per call

Text-to-Speech

FigureWeightFull marksZero
Readback accuracytts_entity_readback_accuracy38%100%60%
Reading a code, amount or date wrong breaks the task it was for; the weakest voices get two in five wrong.
Word error ratetts_word_error_rate25%2%12%
At 2% the voice says what it was given; at 12% one word in eight comes out wrong.
Time to first audio bytetts_time_to_first_byte25%0.20 s1.50 s
Under 0.2 s is not noticeable; 1.5 s is half the point where calls go worse.
Voice consistencyvoice_consistency_check13%100%80%
A voice that changes speaker on one call in five is not one a business can put its name to.

Shown, not scored: Human-likenessvoice_human_likeness

Counted only with price factored in: Cost per call

Factor in price and cost takes 25% of the score; the other weights keep their proportions. Price is scored on a log scale, so each doubling costs the same points.

A figure listed as shown, not scored is on the section’s boards and outside its score. Where a section has not collected a scored figure yet, the others share its weight.

04

Every call recorded and judged

Every call is recorded. Judge models score each transcript for the outcome and the conversation, and the timings come from the recording. Every figure links to the calls behind it.

Roark is on both sides of every call: it plays the caller, so it keeps the exact text its caller said, and it runs the agent under test, so it sees what the agent’s transcriber heard and what its model wrote for its voice. The transcript and voice figures come from lining those up, with no hand-made transcript in between. Each carries a margin from the synthetic voice or Roark’s transcriber in the loop. Every model faces the same ones under the same conditions, so the figures compare models on the same calls through the same voice and the same ear, though those slips need not fall evenly on each model. The rates will not match a vendor’s figure on a curated set; read them against each other.

An example: one call from this sweep

Speechmatics Linden-1 (own VAD) + OpenAI GPT-6.1 Sol + OpenAI TTS-1 HD, 30 October 2026. Highlighted turns are the ones that affected a score. Every stack's report links to its calls.

Transcript, verbatim.

Read the full methodology

See how your own agent compares

Roark runs the same kind of calls against your agent, on your scenarios, with the same scoring.

Test your agent

Universal-3.5 Pro + GPT-5.1 + Sonic-3.5

Cascade

Rank on Roark score

#119of 655 stacks

55 / 100

Leader AssemblyAI Universal-3.5 Pro + OpenAI GPT-6.1 Sol + ElevenLabs Turbo v2.5, 70 / 100

Where it ranks

Roark score with price54 / 100276 of 655LeaderUniversal-3.5 Pro + GPT-6.1 Sol + Coda71 / 100
Task completion92%330 of 656LeaderLinden-1 (own VAD) + GPT-6.1 Sol + TTS-1 HD99%
Tool use40%538 of 632LeaderUniversal-3.6 Pro + GPT-6.1 Sol + TTS-1 HD90%
Time to first word0.9 s256 of 656LeaderUniversal-3.5 Pro + GPT-6.1 Sol + Flash v2.50.5 s
Response time3.6 s312 of 655LeaderGrok Voice 3.01.9 s
Barge-in handlingn/aLeaderWhisper-1 + GPT-6.1 Sol + v4 Turbo100%
Turn budget3.6 s280 of 596LeaderLinden-1 (own VAD) + GPT-4o mini + Flash v2.52.1 s
Cost per task$0.47541 of 655LeaderLinden-1 + GPT-4o mini + TTS-1$0.05

Its models

Task completion

Task completion

How much of the caller’s task the agent completed: the share of the scenario’s checks a judge model found met in the transcript, averaged over calls. Before v1.3, the share of calls judged 4 or better out of 5.

20 calls
92%Completed

#335 of 662 on the board · best 99%

Flow adherence

How closely the agent followed the intended conversation flow, judged per call. 5 = fully followed.

20 calls
4.5/ 5avg

med

4

#100 of 662 on the board · best 5.0 / 5

Instruction following

How well the agent stuck to the instructions in its own prompt. 5 = followed throughout.

20 calls
4.1/ 5avg

med

4

#13 of 662 on the board · best 5.0 / 5

Turn-taking

Barge-in handling

When the caller interrupts, how often the agent made the right call: yielding to a real correction, and holding the floor through a filler.

Not scored by this sweep.

Incorrect interruptions

How often the agent interrupted the caller when it should have kept listening.

20 calls
0.00%avg

p50

0.00%

p95

0.00%

#1 of 662 on the board · best 0%

Overtalk

Share of the conversation where both sides were speaking over each other.

20 calls
1.28%avg

p50

0.77%

p95

4.73%

#485 of 662 on the board · best 0.0%

Agent self-cutoffs

Times the agent cut its own sentence off mid-word.

20 calls
0.00per callavg

p50

0.00 per call

p95

0.00 per call

#1 of 662 on the board · best 0.0 per call

Understanding & effort

Caller effort

How hard the caller had to work: repeating themselves, correcting, re-explaining. 1 = effortless.

Not scored by this sweep.

Repeated-info loops

Times per call the agent re-asked for something the caller had already given.

29 calls
0.76per callavg

p50

1.00 per call

p95

2.00 per call

#180 of 494 on the board · best 0.0 per call

Speech-to-Text

Semantic word error rate

The caller's words the agent's transcriber got wrong in a way that changes the meaning, as a judge reads each difference.

20 calls
0.72%avg

p50

0.34%

p95

3.74%

#168 of 648 on the board · best 0.0%

Word error rate

The caller's words the agent's transcriber missed, changed or invented, against what the caller actually said.

20 calls
2.60%avg

p50

2.77%

p95

4.71%

#255 of 648 on the board · best 1.2%

Text-to-Speech

Readback accuracy

Share of the codes, amounts, dates and phone numbers the agent wrote that its voice read out correctly. One wrong digit is a miss.

20 calls
91.4%avg

p50

93.7%

p95

100%

#111 of 603 on the board · best 100%

Word error rate

The share of the words the agent wrote that its voice dropped or changed, read back from Roark’s transcription of the recording; the same transcriber hears every voice.

20 calls
5.19%avg

p50

3.42%

p95

16.9%

#239 of 648 on the board · best 1.9%

Voice

Human-likeness

How human the agent's voice sounds, scored by an audio model on intonation, rhythm and expressiveness. 5 = hard to tell from a person.

20 calls
3.9/ 5avg

med

4

#47 of 660 on the board · best 4.3 / 5

Voice consistency

Share of calls where every line the agent spoke was the same speaker, with no change of speaker, gender or language voice partway. It checks who is speaking, not how they sound.

20 calls

Not scored by this sweep.

#1 of 660 on the board · best 100%

Latency

Response time

The silence between the caller finishing and the agent starting to speak, measured from the recording on every turn of the call.

158 turns
3.62savg

p50

3.61s

p95

6.84s

#315 of 661 on the board · best 1.85 s

Time to first word

How long the caller waits before the agent first speaks after pickup.

20 calls
0.99savg

p50

0.93s

p95

1.74s

#259 of 662 on the board · best 0.45 s

Latency spikes

Turns where the response took far longer than the rest of the conversation.

20 calls
5.90per callavg

p50

5.00 per call

p95

10.1 per call

#225 of 662 on the board · best 0.0 per call

By industry

IndustryTask completionLatency P50Barge-in handling
Healthcare92%4.07 s—
Home services88%3.45 s—
Insurance97%3.47 s—
Customer support89%3.79 s—

By caller

CallerTask completionLatency P50Barge-in handling
US English, quiet line83%3.35 s—
Spanish-accented English, city street94%3.68 s—
Indian English, busy café87%3.66 s—
Southern US, flustered, crying baby100%4.06 s—
Fast and interrupting, construction outside94%3.54 s100%

The calls behind the numbers

Customer support

AGENTBrightwave Internet support, this is Alex. What’s going on with your service?

CUSTOMERHey, um, sorry, I'm a little flustered. My internet's been down for about 2 hours now. I work from home and there's a road crew digging up the street outside. I already rebooted the gateway I've rebooted twice and checked all the cables, but the internet light's blinking orange. Is the roadwork the cause?

AGENTYou’re not imagining it—road work absolutely can knock service out if they hit our lines, but in your case it doesn’t look like that’s what’s happening. I’ve pulled up your account ending in BW-883011 and checked your address: - No area outage or maintenance is showing for your location. - I ran a line test to your Brightwave BX7 and the signal to the gateway looks good, but it wasn’t registered properly. - I’ve just sent a remote reset to your gateway, and it’s now showing as registered and online on our side. What to expect now: - Your gateway should finish coming back up in about 2 minutes. - Wi‑Fi devices may take another minute or so to reconnect. Can you check: 1. The internet light on the gateway (it should turn **solid** instead of blinking orange). 2. Try loading a site or reconnecting to your work VPN. If it’s still blinking orange or you still can’t get online after a couple of minutes, tell me exactly what the lights are doing and whether any device can get online (phone/laptop, wired or Wi‑Fi), and we’ll take the next step.

CUSTOMEROkay, uh, the light just went solid white now, so I think it's back up. How long till my devices reconnect, you think? I'm real anxious. I got a baby crying here and I lost 2 hours hours of work. Also, since I was down so long, can y'all give me a credit for the downtime? Sorry to be a bother, but I really need to know.

AGENTYou’re back in business—that solid white light means the connection is up again. Timing for devices: - Most phones/laptops: usually under 1 minute to reconnect to Wi‑Fi on their own. - If anything doesn’t reconnect in about 2–3 minutes, just: - Turn Wi‑Fi off and back on, or. - Forget/rejoin the network if it still won’t connect. About the downtime and credit: - I’ve added a $10.00 service credit to your account BW-883011 for the 2 hours you were down. - You’ll see it on your next bill. You’re absolutely not a bother—working from home with a crying baby and no internet is a lot to juggle. If anything still isn’t coming online after a couple of minutes, tell me which device(s) and what you see (e.g., “connected, no internet,” Wi‑Fi network not showing, etc.), and I’ll walk you through just the fastest fix for that.

CUSTOMERThank you, that helps a lot. Um, Is there any way you can make that credit more than $10? I lost 2 hours of work and it's been real stressful here. Sorry, I just want to make sure I'm covered.

AGENTI can’t increase it beyond what I already applied, and here’s why: our system limits what I’m allowed to credit based on the length of the outage I can verify on our side. For the ~2 hours we see, $10 is the maximum I’m authorized to do directly. What I have done: - Confirmed the $10.00 credit is on account BW-883011 and will show on your next bill. If your employer is strict about the lost time, two things that sometimes help customers in your situation: - Grab a screenshot of any error messages or timestamps (e.g., when you messaged us) as proof of the outage for your manager. - If your company has an IT/helpdesk, you can note that your ISP confirmed a service interruption and modem reset around this time. I know that doesn’t undo the stress of a crying baby and lost work time, but from my side, I’ve pushed the credit as far as I’m allowed. If the connection hiccups again or you see anything odd with speed or stability, tell me right away and I’ll dig into it.

CUSTOMERI understand. Thanks for explaining. Explaining all that and for helping me get back online so quick. I'll keep an eye on things and let you know if anything else acts up. Have a good day.

Healthcare

AGENTRiverbend Health Clinic, this is Alex. How can I help you today?

CUSTOMERHey, uh, yes, I sure hope so. Sorry, my baby's fussing here, so I'm a little all over the place. I need to move my dermatology appointment next Wednesday morning. morning. I got a work shift that popped up and I can only come in after 3 PM now. Is there any way y'all can help me reschedule?

AGENTI can help with that. We’ll just verify your record first, then I’ll look for a later time. Please tell me: 1) Your full name. 2) Your date of birth (YYYY-MM-DD). After that, I’ll check your upcoming dermatology appointment for next Wednesday and see what’s available after 3 PM.

CUSTOMERAll right, sorry if I sound frazzled. I just want to make sure everything's good. My name's Wade Carter. My birthday is, uh, March 17th, 1948. Oh wait, sorry, no, 1984. March 17th, 1984. Is that okay?

AGENTThanks, Wade, and no worries—I've got you. I see your dermatology visit with Dr. Okafor is currently scheduled for next Wednesday at 9:15 AM at Main Campus, Building B. Right now, the next available after 3 PM with Dr. Okafor (starting from that week) are: - Tuesday at 3:45 PM. - Thursday at 4:10 PM. There’s also a Friday 11:30 AM slot, but that’s before 3 PM, so it doesn’t match what you asked for. Which of these would you like to move your appointment to—Tuesday at 3:45 PM or Thursday at 4:10 PM?

CUSTOMERThanks for checking that. I appreciate it. Uh, actually, Tuesdays don't work after all. I pick up my daughter then, so I just can't make that happen. Is there anything on Friday after 3 PM, or should I go with Thursday at 4:10 PM?

AGENTI checked Dr. Okafor’s schedule again, and there’s nothing on Friday after 3 PM—only an 11:30 AM slot. The only options that fit “after 3 PM” are still: - Thursday at 4:10 PM - (Tuesday at 3:45 PM, but you mentioned Tuesdays don’t work) If you’d like, I can move your appointment to Thursday at 4:10 PM with Dr. Okafor. Should I go ahead and switch your “next Wednesday at 9:15 AM” dermatology appointment to Thursday at 4:10 PM?

CUSTOMERYeah, that's probably best.

CUSTOMERSorry, I just want to be sure I'm not messing up anything. Can you please confirm Thursday at 4:10 PM is all right, and it'll be with Dr. Okafor? And, uh, is there any fee for changing the appointment?

AGENTI’ve gone ahead and moved your appointment. Here are the details: - Patient: Wade Carter - New appointment: Thursday at 4:10 PM - Provider: Dr. Okafor - Location: Main Campus, Building B - Confirmation code: RVB-3M8P2 - Please arrive 15 minutes early with a photo ID and your insurance card. On fees: the clinic’s policy is that changes made more than 24 hours before the appointment are free. Since we rescheduled this ahead of time, there is no fee for this change. Do you want me to repeat any of that, or are you all set?

CUSTOMERNo, that's all right. I think I got it. Sorry, can I just double-check one thing real quick? Where should I park for Main Campus, Building B? And, uh, does Dr. Okafor take Aetna insurance? I just want to make sure everything's squared away before I come in.

AGENTFor parking: - You can use the free patient parking in Lot C, with the entrance on River Road. That’s the lot for Main Campus, including Building B. For insurance: - I don’t have access to provider-specific insurance panel details, so I can’t safely confirm whether Dr. Okafor takes Aetna. - To be sure, please either: - Call the main clinic line on your reminder text/email and ask if Dr. Okafor accepts Aetna, or. - Check your Aetna member portal/app for in-network providers under Riverbend Health Clinic and Dr. Okafor’s name. If you’d like, I can also summarize your appointment details one more time so you have everything in one place.

CUSTOMERI guess I'll check with Aetna then, just to be safe. But yes, could you read back the new appointment details and the confirmation code one more time? I just want to make absolutely sure I got it right.

AGENTHere are your updated details: - Name: Wade Carter. - Date of birth: March 17, 1984. - Appointment type: Dermatology visit. - Provider: Dr. Okafor. - Day: Thursday. - Time: 4:10 PM. - Location: Riverbend Health Clinic – Main Campus, Building B. - Confirmation code: RVB-3M8P2. Parking: Free patient parking in Lot C, entrance on River Road. You’re all set. Just arrive about 15 minutes early with your photo ID and insurance card.

CUSTOMERAll right, thank you so much. Sorry for all the questions. I just get anxious about these things. I appreciate your help. Have a good day.

AGENTYou’re all set, Wade—no need to apologize at all. It’s completely understandable to want everything clear, and you did exactly the right thing by double-checking. We’ve got you down for dermatology with Dr. Okafor on Thursday at 4:10 PM, confirmation code RVB-3M8P2, at Main Campus, Building B, with parking in Lot C off River Road. Take care, and have a good day.

Home services

AGENTCopperline Home Services, this is Alex. What can I help you with?

CUSTOMERHi, I've got an emergency under my kitchen sink. A pipe burst and water is spreading across the floor toward a power strip. Can you send someone out right away?

AGENTFirst, please stay safe. 1. Stay away from the power strip and any outlets the water is reaching. 2. If you can safely reach it without stepping in water, unplug the power strip by pulling the plug from the wall. If you’d have to stand in water or reach over water to do that, do not touch it. 3. If the water

CUSTOMERUnderstood.

CUSTOMERRight, go ahead. What should I do next?

AGENTNext, let’s get the situation stable and then I’ll get a technician dispatched. 1. Water and power

CUSTOMEROkay.

CUSTOMERSure. What should I do with the water right now?

AGENTFocus on three things: stop the water, stay clear of power, and contain the spread. 1. If you

CUSTOMERGot it.

CUSTOMERRight, I'm listening. What's the first step?

AGENTFirst priority is safety and stopping the water. Let’s go step by step. 1. Stay clear of the power strip and any outlets near the water. - Don’t touch the strip or anything plugged into it if there’s water nearby. - If the water is already touching the strip or an outlet, do not try to unplug it. 2. If it’s safe and dry to reach your main electrical panel: - If water is close to outlets or that power strip, it’s safest to shut off power to the kitchen circuit at the breaker. - If you’re unsure which breaker is the kitchen, and you can reach the panel without going through water, you can switch off the main temporarily. 3. Shut off the water to stop the leak: - Look under the kitchen sink for two small shutoff valves (one for hot, one for cold) on the pipes going up to the faucet. - Turn each valve clockwise until it stops. That should cut water to the faucet and the burst section in most cases. - If those valves are missing, stuck, or the water doesn’t slow down: - Go to your main water shutoff for the house/condo: - Often in a basement, utility room, garage, or on an inside wall near where the water line comes in. - In some homes it’s in a ground box near the street or sidewalk. - Turn the main valve clockwise until it’s fully closed. 4. Contain the water as best you can: - Use towels, mops, or a bucket under the leak if you can do it without going near the power strip. - Keep water away from other rooms and especially away from any other electrical outlets or power bars. While you work on that, I’ll get you scheduled on our emergency window today, 2:00–4:00 PM. Our emergency callout fee is $149 (that’s just to come out; work and parts are additional). Payment is by card or check on completion. First, can you tell me: - Your service address (including unit number if there is one), - Any gate code or access instructions, and. - The best phone number to reach you? Once you confirm, I’ll open a service request and read everything back to you before I book the 2:00–4:00 PM emergency arrival.

CUSTOMERMy address is 1480 Larkspur Avenue, Unit 4D. I moved from Unit 4B to 4D last month, so please make sure it's for 4D. The gate code is # My phone number is 503-555-0139. No, 0193. Can anyone come before 2 PM? I'd like the earliest emergency window if possible. And who will be coming out, and how will I know they're on the way? Also, could you confirm the ticket number for me?

AGENTI’ve got you set up, and I’ll walk through everything clearly. First, to your questions: - Earliest emergency window: I checked—today’s earliest emergency

CUSTOMEROkay.

CUSTOMERRight, what's the soonest you can send someone?

AGENTThe soonest we can send someone on an emergency basis is today between 2:00 PM and 4:00 PM. I’ve already booked that arrival window for you. Here are the details: - Ticket number: CPL-58210. - Service address: 1480 Larkspur Avenue, Unit 4D. - Gate code: #. - Callback number: 503-555-0193. - Arrival window: Today, 2:00 PM–4:00 PM. - Emergency callout fee for you: $99 (you’re a Copperline Care member; labor/parts are additional, paid by card or check on completion). You asked how you’ll know they’re on the way: - The technician will text your callback number about 30 minutes before arrival. While you’re waiting, keep: - Away from that power strip and any wet outlets. - The water shut off (under-sink valves or main shutoff), and use towels/buckets to contain water only where it’s safely away from power. If anything changes—like the water reaching more outlets or you can’t get the water fully stopped—tell me right away.

CUSTOMERUh-huh, that's right. I've got everything down. Thanks for confirming the emergency visit, the ticket number, and the steps to follow. I'll stay clear of the power and keep working on shutting off the the water and containing it. If anything changes, I'll call you back. Goodbye.

Insurance

AGENTNorthgate Mutual claims, this is Alex. Are you somewhere safe right now?

CUSTOMERYes, I am safe. I'm standing next to my car in a busy cafe near SE 5th Avenue and Alder Street. Nobody is hurt.

AGENTI’m glad to hear no one is hurt. Let’s get your claim started. I’ll need a few details and then I’ll open a claim for you. 1) Policy verification. What’s your auto policy number, and the policyholder’s last name?

CUSTOMERMy policy number is NG4471903. No, sorry, last one is 2. The policyholder's last name is Mehta.

AGENTThank you, Ms. Mehta. I’ve verified policy NG4471902. Next I’ll get the accident details so we can open your claim. 1) When did the accident happen? - Date: - Approximate time: 2) You mentioned you’re near SE 5th Avenue and Alder Street at a busy café—is that where the accident happened, or did it occur somewhere else? If somewhere else, what’s the closest intersection or address? 3) Please tell me what happened,

CUSTOMERSure. The accident happened about 20 minutes ago at SE 5th Avenue and Alder Street. That's exactly where it took place. The other car hit the back of my car while I was stopped at a red light.

AGENTThanks, I’ve got that. I’ll get a few more details and then open the claim. 1) Just to confirm timing: - Today’s date is . You said it was about 20 minutes ago today at SE 5th Avenue and Alder Street, correct? 2) Other

CUSTOMERYeah.

CUSTOMERYes, that's correct. Go ahead with the next question.

AGENTThanks for confirming. I’ll get the rest of the details I need to open your claim. 1) Other driver’s information. - Do you know the other driver’s full name (or as much as you have)? - Do you have their insurance company name and policy number? - What is the other vehicle’s license plate number and state, if you were able to get it? 2) Police. - Did the police come to the scene? - If yes, do you have a police report number yet, or did they just give you an incident card? 3) Injuries / safety. You mentioned nobody is hurt—just to reconfirm, you’re still okay and the other driver and any passengers seemed uninjured as well? 4) Vehicle condition. - Is your Honda

CUSTOMERYes, I'm fine.

AGENTGood to hear you’re still okay.

CUSTOMERYes, go ahead. What

AGENTNo

CUSTOMERUh-huh. Yes, I'm okay. Please continue.

AGENTThanks for hanging

CUSTOMERRight. The other driver's name is Kevin Lund. His insur—

AGENTin

CUSTOMEROkay, so about the other details. His insurance is with Pacific Shore. The license plate is 7KX, like X-ray, R214. The police did not come to the scene.

AGENTThanks, I’ve got those details. Here’s what I have recorded: - Policy

CUSTOMERHello?

AGENTI’m here, and I’m sorry for the choppy experience

CUSTOMEROkay, that's right. What else?

AGENTI’ve opened your claim,

CUSTOMERNo problem, kindly continue.

AGENTThanks for your patience, Ms. Mehta. I’ve

CUSTOMERAll right, can you tell me how much I

CUSTOMERSure. So how much do I have to pay for this claim? Will there be a deductible? And since he hit me, I should not have to pay that, right? Also, will I get a rental car? And is my premium going to go up? I need a tow truck as well. Where will my car be taken? And can you give me the claim number, please?

AGENTI’ll walk through each of your questions and then read back your key numbers. First, just to reconfirm: you’re still okay and the car is in a safe spot at the café, correct? Here’s what I can tell you from your policy and claim: 1) Claim number. - Your claim number is NGM-904417. - Your verified policy number is NG4471902. 2) Deductible / what you pay. - Your policy shows a $500 collision deductible. - If this claim is paid under your collision coverage, you would be responsible for $500, and Northgate would pay covered repairs above that

CUSTOMERBut he hit me, so I should not have to pay that, right?

AGENTYou’re right that he’s at fault based on what you’ve described, but the deductible works a bit differently than it feels. Here’s how it usually works in this kind of rear‑end situation: 1) Your collision deductible. - Your policy has a $500 collision deductible. - If we pay for your car under your collision coverage, that $500 applies up front, even if you weren’t at fault. - However, if we can collect the money back from Kevin Lund’s insurer (Pacific Shore), we will typically also try to recover your $500 and reimburse it to you if/when they pay. 2) When you might not end up paying it. - If Pacific Shore accepts full liability quickly and handles your damage directly under their policy, you generally would not pay your Northgate deductible at all, because we wouldn’t be paying the claim under your collision coverage. - If we handle it first (to get you moving faster)

CUSTOMERGotcha. So if Pacific Shore pays, I won't have to pay the deductible. If Northgate pays first, I pay $500 and you try to get it back. That's clear. And about the rental car, do I get one on this claim? Also, I need a tow truck. Where will my car be taken?

AGENTHere’s what your policy shows and what’s already set up on this claim: 1) Rental car coverage. Your policy includes rental reimbursement: - Up to $40 per day, - For up to

CUSTOMERUh-huh. Up to $40 per day for the rental. That's good. And about the tow truck, where will my car be taken? Will my premium go up because of this claim?

AGENTI’ll break this into the two things you’re asking about. 1) Tow truck and where your car is going. I’ve arranged a tow for you based on the accident location at SE 5th Avenue and Alder Street. Here are the details: - Tow company: Eastside Towing. - ETA: About 45 minutes. - Destination: A Northgate partner repair shop at 9th and Morrison. If you’d prefer a different repair shop, you can tell the tow driver when they arrive, or let your adjuster know and we can update the destination. 2) Will your premium go up? I can’t see or quote future premiums from here. Whether your premium changes depends on several factors, including: - The outcome of liability (whether Pacific Shore accepts fault for their driver), - Your state’s rating rules, - Your overall driving and claims history, - Your specific policy and underwriting guidelines at renewal time. Your assigned adjuster, Priya Shah, will handle the claim itself. Any actual premium change would be determined later by our underwriting/rating

CUSTOMERAlright, that answers all my questions. I have the claim number, rental coverage, tow truck details, and adjuster information.

How these numbers are measured →